


Empty Words

by conceptstage



Series: Single Chapter Critical Role [93]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-16 03:13:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 807
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21029315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/conceptstage/pseuds/conceptstage
Summary: Beau and Caleb discuss a parent's love.





	Empty Words

“Caleb,” Beau started, leaning against the wall with her arms resting lazily on her knees. She didn’t look away from the dark trees that surrounded the campsite. Caleb did look away, turned over his shoulder to look at her. “Would you tell me about your parents?”

Caleb froze and turned quickly back around so that she couldn’t see his face. “You know about my parents.”

“I know what you did to them.” Then she winced because phrasing it that way sounded a little aggressive. “I was hoping you could talk about who they were as… as people? As parents? How did you know…” She paused and took a deep breath in through her nose and held it for a moment before letting it out. “How did you know they loved you?”

“They told me they did.”

Beau snorted. “That doesn’t mean shit.” Beau probably knew better than anyone how empty the words ‘I love you’ could really be. Caleb knew what she was asking for, she wanted stories of small things his parents did that made him feel loved but he wasn’t sure if he could say those memories out loud. “Nevermind,” she said, when the silence stretched passed the point of awkwardness. “It was a stupid question, just forget about it.” She seemed to let the matter drop and they sat in silence for several minutes before one of them spoke up again.

“My  _ mater _ ... “ Caleb started. Beau didn't look over at him but he was sure that she was listening. “She would come home every single day after working in the field with something to show me. Sometimes she would sneak away a handful of berries she’d harvested, or a flower she thought was pretty. I liked it because it told me that she was thinking about me even when I was not with her. One time she brought home a vole in her pocket and let me name him before we released him by the river.”

“What did you name him?”

Caleb chuckled. “I do not really remember, to be honest. It was something stupid most likely, I am very uncreative when it comes to names.”

“You named Frumpkin, that’s pretty creative.”

“ _ Mater _ named Frumpkin. Frumpkin was our cat when I was young, she died before I left for the Academy. I named my familiar after another cat because I am shit at naming things.”

Beau was quiet for a moment. “Schmidt. You named him.”

“He is named after my neighbor from when I was young.”

“Wow, you really are shit at naming things.” She was grinning when she turned to meet his eyes. “What about your dad?”

Caleb cleared his throat. “ _ Vater _ was not around much. He was a soldier and he got called away a lot. In those days we weren’t at war but soldiers were always needed for one thing or another. Whenever he came home he would hide in the closet and  _ Mater _ would call me down the stairs and when I would run down he would jump out and grab me from behind and lift me into the air and kiss my head over and over.” He had thought that talking about this would be painful and there was a small feeling of pain in his chest but it was almost overcome by the joy he felt. He hadn’t thought about his parents in a long time and when he did it was always about their deaths and the guilt that filled him. Thinking about their lives instead was better.

“Wow,” she mumbled. “My father traveled sometimes but he was usually working out of his office at home. We could be in the same house and I’d go weeks without seeing him. Sometimes I’d hear his voice from across the house and think about going to talk to him but I knew that he’d just be mad at me for bothering him.”

“And… and your mother?”

Beau didn’t answer right away. “My mother was always trying to make me into a younger version of her. She never really saw me for who I was and when she did get glimpses… I don’t think she liked what she saw.”

“Why…” he cleared his throat and paused. He wasn’t sure that he wanted the answer to this question. “Why do you ask?”

Beau sighed and looked away from him. “My parents used to say this thing… ‘We do this because we love you’. I always believed them. I guess… I guess I just wanted someone else to confirm that they were lying.” She frowned and turned back to look at him. “Sorry to bring this up. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad.”

“Nein, no, talking about them was nice. If it helps… you have many people here now who love you for real.”

She smiled slightly. “I know. Thanks.”


End file.
